7,000 households in 170 estates will have services taken over by council
It is the single biggest “taking in charge” move by the council, which will now take over the running of water, sewerage, footpaths, lighting etc in these formerly, private estates.
The council is to prepare a programme of works to bring all of the estates’ infrastructure up to standard.
John O’Neill, the council’s head of planning, said some of the money to do this would come from bonds which developers had lodged with banks.
These bonds were a type of insurance policy designed to be cashed in by local authorities if developers went bust, so they could carry out works on unfinished estates.
Mr O’Neill is urging more private estates to make an application to be taken in charge by the council.
He said it was his intention to prepare a programme of upgrading works in all 170 estates and “carry them out as quickly as possible”.
It’s unprecedented that so many estates should be taken in charge in one fell swoop. Credit for the move was given to Cllr Seamus McGrath (FF), who, for the last couple of years campaigned for better infrastructure for unfinished estates .
Cllr Noel Costello (Lab) said: “Lots of estates in the last few years have been managed by receivers. It’s a great day for people in those estates to have them taken over by the council.”
Cllr McGrath welcomed the news, but said there was an initial list of 372 estates looked at. He was told by officials some were not taken in charge in this tranche because they had not made proper applications. “It’s important we take in charge more estates and in a more timely fashion,” he said.
A total of 15 other estates have put in proper applications, but they can’t yet be taken in charge because they have issues with their sewerage treatment systems.
Council officials said they were waiting for Irish Water representatives to examine these systems before they could be taken in charge.
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